Real Characters

Simon Rich: “I Love Girl”

Fri, 03 May 2013 17:15:00 -0400

Simon Rich has written what I think is the best, most nuanced Shouts & Murmurs I’ve read in a long time. You should definitely read it and then come see him in person at the next REAL CHARACTERS show on May 8 at 8pm at McNally Jackson Books in SoHo.

What’s this? Upcoming REAL CHARACTERS storyteller George...

Fri, 03 May 2013 17:09:56 -0400

What’s this? Upcoming REAL CHARACTERS storyteller George Gordon being interviewed by Emily Heller? Oh, and they’ve both eaten what seems to be a ghost pepper? Some kind of extremely hot pepper? Charming and wonderful? Yes, definitely charming and wonderful.

Come see George at REAL CHARACTERS on May 8 at 8pm at McNally Jackson Books in SoHo. He’s this likable and funny even without having eaten a pepper.

Colin Nissan in McSweeney's

Fri, 03 May 2013 17:05:00 -0400

Colin Nissan in McSweeney's:

Hey! Hey, you! Read Colin Nissan’s latest humor essay for McSweeney’s Internet Tendency—By Day I’m an Omlet Chef, but by Night, I’m an Omlet Chef at Another Place. It’s hilarious, just like Colin.

Come see proof of that at the next REAL CHARACTERS show on May 8 at 8pm at McNally Jackson Books in SoHo. Free.

Rachel Shukert on Smash

Fri, 03 May 2013 17:00:00 -0400

Rachel Shukert on Smash:

Are we all reading Rachel Shukert’s amazing recaps of the tv show Smash for Vulture? They’ve become something of a pop culture phenomenon in their own right. Plus, they allow you to stop hate-watching Smash, with opens up a lot of spare time and slightly uncrushes one’s soul.

Come see Rachel read at the next REAL CHARACTERS show on May 8 at 8pm at McNally Jackson Books in SoHo. It’s free and wonderful.

SAVE THE DATE - WEDNESDAY, MAY 8 at 8pm For the next REAL...

Mon, 29 Apr 2013 14:05:00 -0400

SAVE THE DATE - WEDNESDAY, MAY 8 at 8pm

For the next REAL CHARACTERS, featuring humor readings and storytelling by:

Simon Rich (author of The Last Girlfriend on Earth and What in God’s Name),
Rachel Shukert (author of Starstruck and Everything is Going to Be Great),
Colin Nissan (McSweeney’s, The New Yorker),
and
George Gordon (stand up and storyteller)

Hosted by Andy Ross. Produced by Ann Marie Lonsdale.

McNally Jackson Books
52 Prince Street, NYC
Free

[Note: This month’s show starts at 8pm, an hour later than normal, which is good, right? Go eat beforehand. Make a whole evening out of it. Y’know what, when’s the last time you had a date night with yourself? Buy some flowers, grab a bite somewhere romantic, see a super funny show, and treat yourself to a cab ride home. It’s the little things that remind you you love you.]

See you then!

No April Show

Thu, 04 Apr 2013 15:43:27 -0400

Hey, you guys, REAL CHARACTERS is taking April off—mostly to switch out winter coats for spring jackets, upload videos of past shows, maybe try pilates, stuff like that. But we’ll be back in May like you wouldn’t believe. Oodalolly, it’s going to be a great show!

Stay tuned here or sign up for our newsletter for information about future shows. You guys?! Thanks, you guys!

SAVE THE DATEMARCH 20 at 7pm For the next REAL CHARACTERS show...

Thu, 14 Mar 2013 23:46:00 -0400

SAVE THE DATE
MARCH 20 at 7pm

For the next REAL CHARACTERS show with a super special guest host. Whaaa? Guest host? That’s right! And, it’s going to be a blast.

Featuring humor readings and storytelling by:
Bob Powers (Shouts & Murmurs, author of Happy Cruelty Day)
Bob Kulhan (Baby Wants Candy, The Second City)
Cammi Climaco (Ask Me: Storytelling)
and
Ted Travelstead (author of the humor book The Petraeus Files)

Hosted by
Alex Gallafent (The P.I.T., BBC’s The World)

REAL CHARACTERS - Comedy & Storytelling
Wednesday, March 20 at 7pm
McNally Jackson Books
52 Prince Street, NYC
Free

UPDATE: We’ve just added author and humorist Alan Zweibel...

Fri, 15 Feb 2013 14:13:18 -0500

UPDATE: We’ve just added author and humorist Alan Zweibel to next week’s REAL CHARACTERS lineup.

Zweibel wrote for the first five seasons of SNL, creating The Samurai character and Roseanne Roseannadanna. He also co-wrote Dragnet, and is the Thurber-winning author of The Other Shulman and Lunatics. Multiple children’s books and hilarious appearances on Letterman—all that stuff. So, pretty great!

REAL CHARACTERS
Humor and Storytelling
February 20 at 7pm
McNally Jackson Books
52 Prince Street, SoHo

Free

SAVE THE DATE - FEBRUARY 20 at 7pm The next REAL CHARACTERS show...

Thu, 14 Feb 2013 14:29:00 -0500

SAVE THE DATE - FEBRUARY 20 at 7pm

The next REAL CHARACTERS show promises to be flat-out terrific, with humor readings and storytelling by:

Tim Carvell (head writer for The Daily Show, author of Planet Tad)
Natasha Rothwell (UCB, Just For Laughs Festival)
Shannon Cason (The Moth, WBEZ’s The Paper Machete)
and
Tim Manley (Fairytales for 20-Somethings, The Unchained Tour)

UPDATE: Now, also featuring Alan Zweibel (SNL, author of The Other Shulman and Lunatics)

Wednesday, February 20 at 7pm
McNally Jackson Books
52 Prince Street, SoHo

Free

Hey, January’s REAL CHARACTERS show was so great! The...

Thu, 14 Feb 2013 14:20:23 -0500

Hey, January’s REAL CHARACTERS show was so great! The best, even.

Big thanks to Ophira Eisenberg, Daniel Nester, Abbi Crutchfield, and Jeff Simmermon along with our producer, Ann Marie Lonsdale, and McNally Jackson Books. Oh, and also to Yvonne Brooks for the photograph. Phew, that’s a lot of big thanks. All well-deserved though.

SAVE THE DATE - JANUARY 9 at 7pm Alright, break’s over....

Thu, 03 Jan 2013 14:24:19 -0500

SAVE THE DATE - JANUARY 9 at 7pm

Alright, break’s over. Time to put down that last, stale cookie, re-button the top button of your pants, and come be blissfully happy at the first Real Characters of 2013.

Featuring storytelling, humor pieces, and readings by:
Ophira Eisenberg (The Moth, host of NPR’s Ask Me Another)
Daniel Nester (author of How To Be Inappropriate)
Abbi Crutchfield (Witstream, MTV, VH1)
and
Jeff Simmermon (This American Life, And I Am Not Lying)

Hosted by Andy Ross. Produced by Ann Marie Lonsdale.

Wednesday, January 9 at 7pm
McNally Jackson Books
52 Prince Street in SoHo
Free

SAVE THE DATE - November 19 at 7pm Real Characters is back for...

Mon, 12 Nov 2012 12:17:00 -0500

SAVE THE DATE - November 19 at 7pm

Real Characters is back for its last show of 2012 on a special night at McNally Jackson. Come see hilarious readings by:

AJ Jacobs (author of Drop Dead Healthy & The Year of Living Biblically)
David Rees (Get Your War On, author of How to Sharpen Pencils)
Anna Goldfarb (author of Clearly I Didn’t Think This Through)
and
Courtney Maum (Electric Literature, Slice Magazine, Literary Death Match)

Hosted by Andy Ross. Produced by Ann Marie Lonsdale.

McNally Jackson Books
52 Prince Street, NYC
(off the N, R, 6, B, D, F, M lines)
Free

Are you kidding me with that lineup? Am I kidding you? No, neither of us are kidding about that lineup.
Note: Normally, the show is every second Wednesday of the month, but this one falls on a Monday. Fun, right? Now all of you with regular Wednesday commitments can come and stop being sad. Don’t be sad, you guys!

UPDATE: Unfortunately, this show has been canceled due to the...

Thu, 18 Oct 2012 16:22:00 -0400

UPDATE: Unfortunately, this show has been canceled due to the hurricane and resulting lack of transportation and electricity.

SAVE THE DATE - November 2 at 7pm

REAL CHARACTERS has a special show as part of the Gotham Storytelling Festival featuring some of our favorite past performers:

Faye Lane (The Moth, Beauty Shop Stories)
Bob Powers (Steamboat, author of Happy Cruelty Day)
Lauren Sharpe (Bored to Death, Boardwalk Empire, The Neo-Futurists)
Bob Kulhan (Baby Wants Candy, Bing Faithful)
and
Dave Hill (This American Life, author of Tasteful Nudes)

Hosted by Andy Ross. Produced by Ann Marie Lonsdale.

UNDER St. Mark’s Theater
94 St. Mark’s Place - between 1st Ave and A

Tickets are $8 with the discount code FANS
available for purchase online
$15 at the door
($12 for students and seniors)

And check out the rest of the festival, presented by the Horse Trade Theater Group at their website.

In honor of the last few weeks of the election, here’s...

Wed, 17 Oct 2012 00:16:00 -0400

In honor of the last few weeks of the election, here’s Pauls Simms (creator of News Radio) reading his political stump speech at the April REAL CHARACTERS show. This piece originally appeared as a Shouts & Murmurs piece in The New Yorker, and it is hilarious.

Follow Paul on twitter at twitter.com/paulsimms.

We thought we’d share this lovely story from back at our...

Wed, 17 Oct 2012 00:03:08 -0400

We thought we’d share this lovely story from back at our July REAL CHARACTERS show.

It’s told by Cathy Harding, a storyteller back to New York after years as a journalist in Charlottesville, Virginia, where she served as the editor in chief of the local alternative newsweekly. (She was also a champion arm wrestler in an all-women’s league and a storyteller with a collective called Secretly Y’All.) We just love this story—it’s funny, sad, vulnerable, charming—and were so glad she told it that night.

Enjoy!

Hey! Thank you to everyone who came and made the October REAL...

Tue, 16 Oct 2012 23:43:03 -0400

Hey! Thank you to everyone who came and made the October REAL CHARACTERS show such a huge success. Here’s a photo of some guy who kept talking during it.
(Photo courtesy the lovely Lee Eddy.)

SAVE THE DATE - OCTOBER 10 at 7pm For the next REAL CHARACTERS...

Tue, 02 Oct 2012 11:59:00 -0400

SAVE THE DATE - OCTOBER 10 at 7pm

For the next REAL CHARACTERS show. Featuring storytelling and humor readings by:

Adam Wade (TedX, 18-time winner at The Moth)
Jessica Grose (Slate, Jezebel, author of Sad Desk Salad)
Eugene Ashton-Gonzalez (1,001 Nights, New York Confidential)
and
Joe Veix (The Awl, McSweeney’s, Splitsider)

Hosted by Andy Ross. Produced by Ann Marie Lonsdale.

REAL CHARACTERS
McNally Jackson Books
52 Prince Street, NYC
Free

Disguised in the Spotlight...

Tue, 11 Sep 2012 11:47:13 -0400

Disguised in the Spotlight...:

“Sometimes when there’s a frequently performed show that’s been going on for awhile – but which you are attending for the first time – there’s a warm and tingling sensation that you’ve stumbled onto a desert island with its own thrilling new customs, or a secret society’s meeting…” - Nick Curley reviewing the August REAL CHARACTERS show for Volume 1 Brooklyn.

Come see our next show September 12 at 7pm to see if it lives up to the hype. (It will, by the way.)

The terrifically funny Will Hines, does a lot of terrifically...

Fri, 07 Sep 2012 16:10:27 -0400

The terrifically funny Will Hines, does a lot of terrifically funny stuff. Here he is in Bad Dads for College Humor. Terrific, right? Come see Will tell a story at the next REAL CHARACTERS show.

REAL CHARACTERS
Wednesday, September 12
7pm
McNally Jackson Books
Free

Television, theater, and humor writer Alan Zweibel discussing...

Fri, 07 Sep 2012 16:10:25 -0400

Television, theater, and humor writer Alan Zweibel discussing comedy and the blank screen with Dave Barry, his co-author for the book Lunatics. Just a ton of charm and experience packed into this video, right? Wonderful all around. Come see Alan at the next REAL CHARACTERS show. We’re very excited about that.

REAL CHARACTERS
Wednesday, September 12
7pm
McNally Jackson Books
Free